America’s National Parks, The Rocky Mountaineer and Las Vegas

We begin our American adventure with a flight from London Heathrow to Denver, checking into our hotel for two nights on arrival.

Transferring to the station this morning, we board the renowned Rocky Mountaineer to begin our epic, two-day journey through some of America's most iconic and impressive landscapes. Leaving Denver, we settle in with breakfast at our seats, admiring views of the Rocky Mountains and Gross Reservoir dam before crossing the Continental Divide. In the afternoon, we continue along the Colorado River, seeing the dramatic gorges of Byers and Gore Canyon on our way to the town of Glenwood Springs.

We make our way by coach into Arches National Park, home to over 2,000 otherworldly-looking stone arches. Here, naturally occurring sweeping sandstone structures frame distant snow-topped mountains and arid desert scrubland, and, as we explore, we learn about how these 65-million-year-old arches came to be. Varying in size from 306 feet to just three feet, no two are the same, yet together these rocks create a maze of orange-hued twists and turns, which we navigate as we see highlights such as the 'Balanced Rock', the 'Devil's Garden' and the 'Delicate Arch'.

Our day begins with free time to explore Canyonlands National Park, created by the ancient flow of the Colorado River. Sights not to be missed here include the 'Island in the Sky', the towering rock pinnacles known locally as 'the Needles' and Horseshoe Canyon, the site of some age-old Native American cave paintings. We transfer by coach to Monument Valley, checking into our hotel here for the night. Straddling the Utah-Arizona state line, this famous national park is home to giant red buttes and a seemingly endless expanse of red sand, giving it a typical Wild West feel. One of the most legendary sights in the whole USA, Monument Valley holds an important place in Navajo culture. Even today, the region has the feel of a romanticised bygone age, a place where cowboys still spend lonely months herding cattle across miles of untouched hills and Native Americans continue to perform rituals passed down through the generations.

We board the Grand Canyon Railway, which made its very first trip back in 1901, for a vintage journey in restored carriages through the Arizona desert to the Grand Canyon's South Rim. An incredible abyss carved from layer upon layer of different rock, each one containing clues to the past, the Grand Canyon is thought to be over five million years old and is one of the most jaw-dropping sights in the world. From its main viewing point, we can see for miles across this dramatic terrain.

Joining the famed Route 66 as we leave Flagstaff, we begin the drive to fabulous Las Vegas, our home for the next two nights. We stop off at the Hoover Dam, an engineering masterpiece designed to end the constant flooding caused by the Colorado River. In 1930, construction began on the Dam, the largest of its kind at the time and, despite the remote location and harsh conditions, it was completed in less than five years - two years ahead of schedule - and well under budget. Named after America's 31st president, Herbert Hoover, it's still one of the country's largest hydro-electric power facilities. Back on board our coach, we head across the eerily beautiful Mojave Desert and, before long, the lights of Las Vegas appear on the horizon.

We transfer to the airport for our overnight flight back to London Heathrow.